Hokkaido University Centre for Ainu and Indigenous Studies delegation visits Melbourne
A delegation from Hokkaido University in Japan has visited Melbourne as part of a project led by Dr Emily Munro-Harrison (Poche Centre, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences) with Professor Hirofumi Kato (Director, Centre for Ainu and Indigenous Studies, Hokkaido University) and Dr Kanako Azawa (Assistant Professor & Ainu artist, CAIS, Hokkaido University), hosted by the Poche Centre.
During the visit, Professor Kato, accompanied by three CAIS postgraduate students, Ms Aki Narumi, Ms Riu Sugimoto and Dr Nahid Uz Zaman, met with staff at the University of Melbourne’s Indigenous Studies Unit (Onemda), Melbourne School of Population and Global Health.
CAIS and the Indigenous Studies Unit are long‑standing collaborators on the Indigenous Data Network project Improving Indigenous Research Capabilities (IIRC) (2021–2028), led by Laureate Professor Marcia Langton.
As part of the project’s international activities, the team is developing an educational program to strengthen Indigenous data governance capabilities across diverse Indigenous contexts. Work with CAIS includes the co‑delivery of training for Ainu students.
Members of the Indigenous Studies Unit have previously travelled to Hokkaido University on three occasions between 2023 and 2025 to present their work and advance planning for the IIRC program.
The Melbourne visit provided an opportunity to continue this work, deepen institutional partnerships, and progress the next stages of program development.
Hokkaido University is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. The Indigenous Ainu people traditionally lived primarily on the islands of Hokkaido, Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands.
Discussions during the visit also included ongoing work at the National Ainu Museum, which in June 2025 appointed its first Indigenous Ainu Executive Director, Mr Masahiro Nomoto.